


Here We Go Again

by Sleepy_Artxst



Category: The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28114554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sleepy_Artxst/pseuds/Sleepy_Artxst
Summary: Twenty Six years in the future, Milo is an optimistic man in his 30s, living with his daughter, Phoenix and her cat Mercury, a blind tabby she found on the streets.Like Milo was, Phoenix finds little point in anything in life, and only pays attention to her cat, who she loves more than herself.When a mysterious box appears in her room at two in the morning, Phoenix and Mercury enter through the tollbooth, and Phoenix finds herself in a strange world with no way homoe.
Kudos: 3





	Here We Go Again

Phoenix often found herself sitting on the balcony in her room, sometimes on the railing, looking out over the city, watching as lights went out one by one. Watching silhouettes of parents tucking their children in to bed was a pastime for her. Her friends thought she was creepy for it, but she simply had nothing else to do.

Tonight was no different. She sat at the dinner table with her father, poking at her food. 

Her father, Milo, sat across from her, brows furrowed in a slightly worried expression. "What's the matter, Nix? You used to love--" 

"Used to, I'm not five anymore." Phoenix muttered, a small huff leaving her as she ate what she could of her dinner, placing her plate beside the sink and picking up Mercury -- a blind white tabby she had found on the streets as a kitten. Milo hadn't approved of her adopting the cat, but decided that she could keep it, as long as she provided for the creature.

"I . . I think I'll head to bed early. Night, dad."

Phoenix held the cat close as she walked to her room, shutting the door and locking it behind her, throwing open the door that led to her balcony, a private area where she hid to pass the time. 

Today, she decided to sit on the railing, Mercury perched on her lap as she looked out over the busy city below her.

"It's all pointless sometimes. Don't you agree, Mercury?"

The little tabby meowed, although he couldn't understand her words, Phoenix liked to think that he could sense what she was feeling. She absentmindedly stroked his soft fur, shivering a bit from the cold night air as the street lights turned on, and lights in windows of apartments went out. Gradually, cars became fewer, until the streets were empty and the stray animals came out of hiding to scour the streets for anything they could eat.

The little bell on Mercury's collar jingled as he shifted in Phoenix' lap, stretching and curling up, nudging her hand with his snout, urging her to continue petting him.

Phoenix let out a little chuckle, continuing to pet him.

The thud of a large box behind her, however, made her jolt. 


End file.
